Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Grrr ... Arrgh!

Last month I had the opportunity to attend Austin Comic-Con. I had a wonderful time and hung out with some great people. There were so many brilliant artists participating in this year's event. I definitely did not leave empty handed! My main motivation for attending this year was the Buffy the Vampire Slayer cast members who did Q&As for a couple panels. Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia), Mercedes McNab (Harmony), Juliet Landau (Drusilla), and James Charles Leary (Clem) were appearing. But the absolute highlight of my fangirl dreams was James Marsters! I was in the same room (mere feet away) with the one and only Spike aka William the Bloody.

All the actors resembled their characters in very subtle ways. Cordelia was assertive & beautiful; Harmony was really bubbly & fun. Dru was very graceful & proper while Clem was humorous and goofy. Spike has a real rock-n-roll attitude that just exudes cool. He was engaging, unbelievably charming, and not to mention dreamy as hell! They each shared various stories and anecdotes of their time on the show. Spike was asked who was his favorite romantic interest. He undoubtedly proclaimed Drusilla whom I was always fond of; she's also much prettier in person. Although, I do love how Buffy and Spike's relationship concluded in season 7. How can you not be Team Spike, after all he did save the world (Angel never did that)!Before Joss Whedon became Hollywood's golden boy who can do no wrong, he created a little show about a spunky girl who fought vampires with her own Scooby gang. I actually watched BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (the film) in the theater and never thought too much of it. Joss wrote the script for the film BUFFY, but what we saw on the screen was not Joss' vision. He almost didn't do the show as a result of the studio cutting up his script to make it much more comical.

Buffy was the last real television show I watched with religious fervor. It's the most special out of my favorite shows because it was the one I related to most. Buffy was in high school around the same time as me so I found it easy to relate to some of her problems (except for demons and vampires). She dealt with issues of love, annoying siblings, isolation, and losing a parent all while juggling schoolwork. This show was also pretty cutting edge; it had the first on screen lesbian kiss. Buffy was also the first show to include a musical episode long before Glee came around. Which brings me to my next topic...

In addition to the Q&A panels, the Alamo Drafthouse hosted a special Buffy Sing-Along with Spike in attendance! The sing-alongs had been going on around the country for a few years after the show ended. It became a phenomenon akin to the ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW events. Even Joss Whedon gave his blessing to these delightful affairs. However, Fox (who owns the rights to Buffy) did not eye to eye. All sing-alongs ceased once Fox dropped the hammer, but somehow the Alamo convinced the powers that be to allow us to indulge "Once More With Feeling." This episode is also very important because it's the first time we see Buffy & Spike kiss. I cannot begin to tell you what an amazing time I had!

I recently started watching all the seasons in the series again in reverse order. I began with season 7 to get the crying all out of my system. Seriously, every episode of the final season left me in a teary mess. I'm relieved to find that the show still holds up after all these years. I also found that my hatred for Dawn has not subsided; she's the Jar Jar Binks of Buffyverse. I've tried watching Sarah Michelle Geller's new show, Ringer, and I just can't get into it. I was also forced to watch the last few seasons of Angel to deal with my withdraws when Buffy ended in 2003. Let it be known that if they really do go through with this remake bullshit with whoever the fuck from Glee, I swear I will call upon the dark forces of Evil Willow to skin them all alive. I highly recommend giving Buffy a chance if you've never seen the show. You won't regret it!